As I posted in the Location and Sightings Alert thread, St. Helens looks good on the west side right now. I had a schedule change at work, and was able to make a chicken run up last night.
I liked the flowers at Loowit, and went there to try for a photo. Sunset was non-existent, with the mountain covered in clouds. I spent the night at Ecopark, and then went back to Loowit before 5am to try again this morning before heading to work this afternoon. The mountain was again completely covered for sunrise as well.
Discouraged, I decided to just hang in the car for a little longer. About 45 minutes after sunrise, the clouds thinned out and let me take this shot. The clouds never completely left the mountain, but got close. It was interesting lighting; the sun was glowing through clouds behind my left shoulder and making the flowers pop just a tad.
Oh, this is really a sweet scene, John, with great light! If the flowers are the main subject, it looks good as composed. If your intention was a lovely floral accent in front of the mountain, I think I'd try cropping off some of the bottom- perhaps a couple inches to just above the prominent of the purple flowers. The image looks highly saturated; here I think I might be commenting more on personal taste than making a critique- I never know... You are becoming a master of light. Patience and perseverance pays off nicely on this shot.
Really Grand photo John. I love the foreground floral color and detail which then leads farther down the colorful hill and how the eyes are then guided thru the valley to Mt St Helens. Another wonderful example of your stacking/blending technique. Nicely done!
This is an exceptional landscape photo John. The light actually works better than sunrise would have in my opinion. Low and angled but even over the scene. I also like the clouds as they add nice interest. Really well done.
Wonderful. I was fixin' to cancel my plan to head up there tomorrow. Maybe I should reconsider. It's suppose to clear a bit, but I might wait until the 23rd/24th. Any sense of how things will look next week?
Posted by John Williams on July 16, 2011 at 10:29 PM
Thanks all! I really value the feedback here.
Marylynne, I worry that a lot of the penstemon will drop by next weekend. I also stopped and looked at the penstemon at Elk Rock Viewpoint both on my bike ride last Sunday and on Thursday evening. In those shore four days about 60% of the blooms had fallen to the ground. They still looked fresh, so maybe wind was involved? Loowit seemed to be doing much better, but I think this weekend is safer than next.
The sharp details and vibrant colors put the flowers at center stage and St Helens makes a perfect bg for them IMO. I agree with Catherine that if you cropped some off the bottom it would be a completely different image and the roles would be reversed. I like lots of color so I think the composition you chose is simply outstanding. Nice job.
Discussion
8 repliesI liked the flowers at Loowit, and went there to try for a photo. Sunset was non-existent, with the mountain covered in clouds. I spent the night at Ecopark, and then went back to Loowit before 5am to try again this morning before heading to work this afternoon. The mountain was again completely covered for sunrise as well.
Discouraged, I decided to just hang in the car for a little longer. About 45 minutes after sunrise, the clouds thinned out and let me take this shot. The clouds never completely left the mountain, but got close. It was interesting lighting; the sun was glowing through clouds behind my left shoulder and making the flowers pop just a tad.
Marylynne, I worry that a lot of the penstemon will drop by next weekend. I also stopped and looked at the penstemon at Elk Rock Viewpoint both on my bike ride last Sunday and on Thursday evening. In those shore four days about 60% of the blooms had fallen to the ground. They still looked fresh, so maybe wind was involved? Loowit seemed to be doing much better, but I think this weekend is safer than next.